Hey there, J!
Welcome back to planDisney. I'm happy to help as you prepare for your upcoming visit.
The first time my family visited Disneyland Resort, my daughter was not tall enough to enjoy many of the thrilling attractions available at Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park. Years later, she's grown quite a bit yet she's still hesitant to tackle that upside-down loop on
Incredicoaster. I've promised her a warm and gooey cookie from
Jack-Jack Cookie Num Nums as soon as she's brave enough. I can practically smell them now!
As you can imagine, we utilized
Rider Switch pretty frequently on that first visit. As we arrived at an attraction where she didn't meet the height requirement, we'd let the Cast Member know we wanted to use the service. Most often, my husband and son would ride first while I waited with my daughter. When they returned, I got the chance to ride with my son while my husband took my daughter to enjoy another adventure.
This feature is designed to save groups from going through the entire queue process twice when not all the member of their party are eligible to ride. It also allowed me to still experience the attraction with a partner instead of always riding alone while my husband waited with both children. If one or more of your three children doesn't meet the height requirements for a particular attraction or cannot wait in the queue for an approved reason, Cast Members will be able to accommodate a Rider Swap scenario for your group. This may mean that one parent waits with 2 kids while you ride with one child, and then your partner takes a turn with 1 child on the next ride. Your group will have two opportunities to accommodate the party at an attraction. You wouldn't be able to go through a third time on the same Rider Switch.
Additionally, the Rider Switch system is not designed solely for seat preferences during the ride. If all members of your party are an eligible height, your group would likely not be able to utilize the service. You can speak with a Cast Member at each attraction entrance for more guidance, but I'd plan to have your party ride all together if possible.
Children under age 7 must be accompanied by someone 14 or older on attractions. I'm not sure of your children's ages but perhaps the two youngest children can each ride with a parent while the older child sits in the row forward or behind. If your kids are old enough, two can be seated together while the other sits next to a parent, and the second parent rides in an adjacent row. Even when I travel on adult-only trips we always vary our seating arrangements on attractions throughout the day. You're sure to make new magical memories each time regardless of who is seated right next to you.
I hope this clarifies the service for you, J. If we can answer any additional questions please come back and let us know.
Magic and memories,
Amy